The third annual Portsmouth Singer Songwriter Festival is upon us, and this year's edition boasts another incredibly interesting bill of performers who will take Portsmouth by storm this weekend.

The two headliners on this year's bill include Feist, who will play Friday night at The Music Hall, and Natalie Merchant, who will play there Saturday.

Beginning today, April 10, the festival will offer a new angle to the programming scope when The Music Hall teams with The Press Room to offer the Jay Smith Memorial Concert, featuring contemporary guitar heroes Chris Eldridge (of the Punch Brothers and Infamous Stringdusters) and Julian Lage.

"This is the first year we're building outside our own venue," said Music Hall's Director of Marketing Monte Bohanan. "The Music Hall would not be here without Jay Smith. He, of course, is the godfather of all local music. That will be a stellar event, and I hope collaborations like this will be more of a staple moving forward"

"It's all about community," Bohanan said. "We're happy to be working with The Press Room, and again with (Portsmouth Music and Arts Center), who lead the Youth and Teen Round Robin event that takes place on Saturday at The Music Hall loft."

Eldridge (AKA "Critter") is excited to play his part of ushering in the festivities.

"We're excited that the organizers felt strongly enough about our music to think that it had a place in a (Singer Songwriter) Festival. We certainly think it belongs. We both love music. We don't just love playing guitar in crazy ways. We get excited about playing beautiful music for music lovers. Our goal is to create great music together that is memorable. That has a place anywhere."

In regards to the word "song" and his place as a songwriter, he said, "Song is a funny word for me. To me, when I think of the word song, I think of a lyrical entity. I've never written a song with lyrics. Julian and I have written a lot of original music though. We're both really inspired by great songwriters — anyone that can craft a narrative that pulls you irresistibly into a world of music — be it through words, the actual music, or whatever. The more instrumental side is where we're close to home. But boy, that said, I've spent countless hours listening to people like Joni Mitchell. She's a huge inspiration. Both her words and her music pull you into a space that you simply want to be in.

Eldridge said working with Lage is very special.

"I think he is truly one of the most incredible musicians I've ever met in my life. He's a totally brilliant player. He's as brilliant a player as you can be, but he's also a very sensitive person — a brilliant human being," he says. "It all comes through in his music. It's playful. There's some humor in his songs ...; He creates a dialogue that opens up doors and invites people in. Without any false modesty, I feel it's a marvel to sit next to him every night. I'm really looking forward to this show, and look forward to the company of everyone that comes out to experience the performance."

The great thing about the Portsmouth Singer Songwriter Festival is that it celebrates all types songwriters and musicians, allowing them to be enjoyed by all types of music fans. It incorporates local players along with legends in the songwriting realm, stars, and up-and-coming artists poised for the big-time.

On Friday at The Music Hall Loft, before the Feist show, will be Lady Lamb the Beekeeper — an artist who developed her skills just over the bridge in the great state of Maine, and, coincidentally, happens to have been born in Portsmouth.

Lady Lamb developed her craft by tapping into the vacancy offered after business hours at her place of employ, Bart's & Greg's DVD Explosion in Brunswick, Maine.

"Working there actually influenced my songwriting a lot. I mean, it allowed me to have an entire space all to myself from the hours of 11 p.m. to 9 a.m.," she says. " I was down there all night by myself, pulling out my gear and making as much noise as I wanted, being that it was in a basement. That alone was the way I was able to learn how to sing — how to shape my words into music — by being really loud ...; as loud as I wanted.

"This all happened by accident, actually," she adds. "I was just out of high school. I had deferred out of college and had plans to go to Central America for a year. That fell through financially at the last minute, so since I had already deferred from school, I was facing being at home in Maine for a year, which didn't sit well with me because I didn't have anything to do or focus on. I get bored easily if I don't have a project to work on. I already had a base in poetry, so basically I just started trying to put my words to music. That's how it all began."

What excites her about being invited to be a part of this year's festival?

"There's a handful of reasons that I'm thrilled to be participating in this year's fest. The first is that I was born in Portsmouth, so it always holds a special place in my heart. The second is that my favorite restaurant, The Friendly Toast, is in town, so any excuse to go there is always a valid one (laughs). And third, I'm so excited Feist will be there. She was the first performer I ever saw that looped vocal tracks. I was blown away. I didn't even know that was possible. She was hugely influential on me. When I found out she was a part of the fest I was floored. I'm just excited to take in the full spectrum of the festival in such a beautiful town."

The Portsmouth Singer Songwriter Festival is poised to be an invigorating experience. The sheer wealth of talent that will be setting the tone for the weekend will add to the ambiance that permeates the streets as festival-goers walk around and take it all in. It's a very cool collection of events that, as a collective whole, is a culmination of sublime cultural significance.

Eldridge sums it up best:

"All of my favorite music is very special to me because it's transcendent. It takes me to a different place and allows me to forget about what's going on right now. I can lose myself in this world of architecture, tone ...; all these things. I would only want any music that I'm a part of to have that same effect on people. The ability to trance into it and travel to another place. I think when music has integrity — when it's good — it can do that. So my goal is to just create good music. As good as I can make.

"I think music just makes everybody's life better. The more people that know how to do it, and care about it, the better off we all are. It's nice that there's a festival that celebrates this form of expression."